Clark, Nuts spin a win in twin bill finale

Jared Clark claims the ballerina-type spin he performed coming out of the batter's box was not intentional.

On the other hand, he would have been forgiven the celebration had such a light-footed pirouette from a 6-feet, 4-inch, 230-pounder been completely choreographed and painstakingly rehearsed.

Clark had just made contact with the Modesto Nuts' first home-field home run off the 2012 season, coming in the fourth inning of the team's 15th home game.

It also gave the Nuts a five-run lead en route to a second-game 10-1 victory over Visalia and a split of the doubleheader in front of a Tuesday crowd of 2,368 at John Thurman Field.

The Rawhide took the opener 1-0 on the strength of a first-inning home run by Chris Owings, who also accounted for his team's offense in the nightcap with a fourth-inning solo shot.

Opposing teams blasted nine homers out of Thurman Field this season before Clark connected on the first for Modesto.

The Nuts already led 3-1, thanks in part to Clark's two-run single in the first inning, when he came to bat in the fourth with a runner at first base.

As soon as the ball left his bat it looked like it had a chance, but so many potential Modesto homers have died at the warning track this season that no one was going to put runs on the board until the ball disappeared.

Meanwhile, back at home plate, Clark was spinning coming out of the batter's box. It was not quite as tight as the 1997 home run spin Barry Bonds pulled off against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and that's because it was less a dance move than a stumble.

"That was because my weight was going that way with the pitch coming down and in," Clark said. "I knew it was gone, but I wasn't trying to show them up or anything like that. It just kinda happened."

Another thing just kinda happening right now is that the Nuts are playing some really good baseball.

They were held to four hits by three different Visalia pitchers in the opener, but still played flawlessly in the field and got a seven-inning complete game -- the team's first this year -- from Juan Gonzalez.

The second game also came and passed without an error, but showcased some of the more recently emerging strengths of this team.

Playing a doubleheader because of an earlier rainout, the Nuts were left without a starter, so the game went to the bullpen. Modesto got three scoreless innings from Craig Bennigson, then Owings connected off Juan Perez in the fourth.

No problem, Isaiah Froneberger retired all four hitters he faced and Kraig Sitton worked the final two innings to save the split.

"I don't know if I've ever played a doubleheader that didn't end in a split," Clark said. "The pitching was amazing tonight and our hitting looks to be coming around. It also looks like we're starting to mesh. Everything's coming together and we're starting to play well."

Clark's been a big part of that. The Nuts have won nine of their last 11 games, and Clark is hitting .368 during that span to raise his average to .294.

"Clark has made big changes to his hitting mechanics, and the fact that he's been able to do this on the fly is impressive because we didn't see him in spring training," said Nuts' manager Lenn Sakata. "We've tried two or three different things with his footwork and this latest one seems to be the best for him."

Similar stories of adjustments and successes can be found up and down the roster, which is why the Nuts -- who often were non-competitive in starting the season 2-9 -- are nobody's easy out right now.

"We are playing better and that's what's really encouraging," Sakata said. "It's fun to come to the park because we feel like we have a chance. The way our pitching is going and now with the depth of our bullpen we know we can compete."

Bee staff writer Brian VanderBeek can be reached at bvanderbeek@modbee.com or (209) 578-2150. Follow him at twitter.com/modestobeek.